BIOMOLECULAR SWITCHING DEVICE

• Main Authors: BEATTIE, JOHN, SAMUEL, EVANS, STUART, ANTHONY, GRANT, CRAIN, JASON, MOUNT, ANDREW, RAYMOND, TERRY, JONATHAN, GORDON, WALTON, ANTHONY, JOHN, CAMPBELL, COLIN, JAMES, GHAZAL, PETER
• Format: Patent
• Language: English; French; German
• Published: 17.09.2008
• Subjects: BEER; BIOCHEMISTRY; CHEMISTRY; COMPOSITIONS OR TEST PAPERS THEREFOR; CONDITION-RESPONSIVE CONTROL IN MICROBIOLOGICAL ORENZYMOLOGICAL PROCESSES; ELECTRICITY; ENZYMOLOGY; INVESTIGATING OR ANALYSING MATERIALS BY DETERMINING THEIRCHEMICAL OR PHYSICAL PROPERTIES; MEASURING; MEASURING OR TESTING PROCESSES INVOLVING ENZYMES, NUCLEICACIDS OR MICROORGANISMS; METALLURGY; MICROBIOLOGY; MUTATION OR GENETIC ENGINEERING; PHYSICS; PROCESSES OF PREPARING SUCH COMPOSITIONS; SPIRITS; TESTING; VINEGAR; WINE

The present invention provides a macromolecular switch ( 51 ) suitable for use in a data acquisition and/or processing device. The switch comprises a macromolecular structure ( 10 ) having an ion binding site ( 14 ), and is flippable between a plurality of discretely different conformations corresponding to different ion binding conditions at the ion binding site ( 14 ). The macromolecular structure ( 10 ) is provided with at least one electrochemical input device ( 43 ) for applying such different ion binding conditions to the ion binding site ( 14 ) in response to corresponding external input signals. The invention also provides a method for data acquisition and/or processing, using a macromolecular structure switch of the invention.